County heroin coalition to play offense

ELIZABETHTOWN — The Essex County Heroin-Opiod Prevention Consortium (ECHO) will be heading into lockdown in order to help teach others about the dangers of these types of drugs.

Essex County Health Department Director Linda Beers said ECHO has received rave reviews for their work on drug prevention during the April 8 meeting of the Essex County Human Services Committee.

“Brooke Clark and Maj. John Tibbits attended the New York State Public Health Association’s convention last week in Lake Placid, and they were met with great accolades as to what we are doing here,” Beers said. “Five other counties are have copied our matrix and set themselves up in the same way as our model because it is a little different. I think we in Essex County are moving the dialogue.”

Beers said the ECHO program is actively seeking ways to get into various aspects of the community, including the local prisons and jails.

“On June 21, we are going to go to a pair of correctional facilities and show the movie ‘Chasing the Dragon,’ not only to the prisoners, but to the correction officers as well so they can identify the warning signs and help to make sure that those in prison can come out and stay away from these drugs,” Beers said.

The movie is also being screened at Moriah Central School June 20, starting at 6 p.m. and being followed by a panel discussion about the heroin and opioid crisis afterwards.

“This will be held at their school, but this is a community event for anyone that wants to come,” Beers said. “I don’t think anyone who has seen this does not know someone who is affected.”

ECHO will also be looking to do trainings in school in the upcoming year.

“Starting with the next school year is when we will be targeting schools specifically,” Beers said. “We want to be able to go and work with the teachers and staff and train them what to look for as far as warning signs and abuse.”

THEY’RE BACK

Beers also told supervisors it was time to prepare for the upcoming tick season as Essex County faces an increased threat from Lyme Disease.

“Currently, Essex County has been classified as having an extremely high risk of Lyme Disease,” she said. “We have to make sure we are taking the proper steps to protect ourselves.”

Essex, Hamilton and Washington counties are some of the highest risk counties in the state for Lyme Disease, ranking with 75.35 cases or more per 100,000 population. Warren, Saratoga and St. Lawrence county rate between 40.12 and 75.35, while Clinton and Franklin County rate between 15.27 and 40.12.

In Essex County alone, Westport, Moriah, New Russia and Schroon Lake have the highest risk of Lyme Disease using the same scale, with Willsboro, Keene, Crown Point and Ticonderoga at the next highest risk level.

MEDICAL RIDES

Krissy Leerkes of the Office for the Aging took time to talk about the volunteer driver program offered to the county through RSVP.

“The volunteer ride program is extremely important in this county,” she said. “I am sure you have had phone calls in your towns seeking rides and I know we get them at our office all of the time. Right now, there are only 10 volunteers in this program with RSVP.”

Leerkes said if there is not a volunteer available, then she sends an employee from her office to provide transportation to medical appointments.

In some cases, two volunteers will be required for trips of longer distances, like residents of Schroon needing rides to Glens Falls for appointments.

“We may need one to take them down and another to bring them back, depending on time,” she said. “One thing the volunteers do a good job at is ride sharing. If they know there are people with appointments close together, they will make the calls and get them up there in one ride.”

SENIOR FAIR

Leerkes also announced the second annual Senior Fair at the Champlain Valley Senior Community Wednesday, May 31, from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.

“We will have several lectures throughout the day and a number of vendor tables,” she said.

Lectures will be on geriatric topics. There will also be live music and a fundraiser for the Meals on Wheels program, along with a soup and salad lunch.